Count The Stars
by The Midnight Fox
Summary: What if Magua thought he killed the sisters during the massacre? What might have been if they had met without having to keep running? read and find out. Warning: does contain sexually explicit scenes.
1. Gunned Down

This is the second "Last of the Mohicans" i've decided to try out. This is in essence a "what if" story. I always wondered what would happen if Magua thought he had killed the sisters during the massacre. what if they didn't meet the others until until after that last battle? It gives me a bit more to play with at any rate. The pairings are Alice/Uncas, Nathaniel/Cora. I love reviews, just keep them polite...flamers will get no response from me.

**Gunned Down**

The explosion of gunfire happened so quickly that Alice couldn't tell when the bird song ended and the screaming began. She had been riding behind her sister on the horse when the first shot was fired, when the women and children began to cry out. Now the world around her was deafening and so smoke filled she couldn't see where danger was coming from. She couldn't see her father, or hear Duncan anymore.

In a vague sea of fog, she saw her sister dismount from the horse and lead it toward a clump of trees. Alice looked around wildly, confused by the sounds and disoriented by who was shooting and from where. Before she could get down from the horse there was a shot fired very close to Cora's shoulder. The horse reared upward and threw Alice sideways off the saddle. She hit the dirt hard and felt the wind being knocked from her chest, then the horse took off.

She heard Cora call her name as she was dragged along with the frightened horse, her foot still tangled up in one stirrup. She cried out in pain, trying to reach up and untangle her shoe. She was pulled over a sharp rock and cried out as it dug into her ribs. With a mighty grunt, she kicked her foot upward and felt it slip from the stirrup. She fell heavily to the dusty ground in a roll. The momentum carried her backwards from the horse and she screamed as heavy hooves pounded into her newly freed legs.

Cora ran blindly into the mayhem after her sister and the fleeing horse. All around her, gun shots echoed and re-echoed against the trees. She had seen the horse rear up, seen her sister fall and all at once both were gone. She raced after her sisters fleeing screams, calling out madly.

"Alice," She screamed over the noise. She felt a hand on her shoulder and swung around wildly with her fist. There was a crack as her hand hit something solid, a cry of pain. Her satisfaction at landing a blow over rode any pain in her hand. She caught sight of an abandoned musket and grabbed it from the ground. Whirling around she aimed it at the face of her attacker. She saw surprise glint for a moment in the Indians eyes and then she pulled the trigger. Then he was gone, and she was running again.

"Alice," She bellowed at the top of her voice, projecting out from her diaphragm. She called over and over until there was a weak answering cry. Then the cry took on a little more strength, and a little more, until it was as loud as hers. She would know her sister's bird song voice anywhere. She turned toward that cry, answered it with her own and kept moving towards it.

A sudden sharp burning in her shoulder stopped her. She staggered, and knitted her brows in confusion. She brought a hand up to rub the pain away and felt something wet. Cora looked at her hand and found it smeared with blood, she blinked, shaking her head. What had she been doing? The noise around her seemed to mute as she looked at that blood, as she tried to make sense of it. Then another sharp burn started in her back. She took a step forward, realizing with slow dawning horror that she had been shot. She turned back to where she thought the shots had come. There was a man with half his face painted black, he had a gun pointed at her. Their eyes met over the barrel and he pulled the trigger again.

Magua watched the dark haired child of Munro fall to the earth and felt nothing. He had killed the gray hair, he had taken the man's heart. He had struck down the oldest daughter with little effort, his revenge was nearly compete. He listened,as Cora had, to the cries of the younger girl. The bird voice that, even wounded, sounded lovely. With her death, the circle would be complete and magua's heart healed. He walked idly through the carnage, followed the cries of the daughter with moonlight in her hair. He found her quickly enough, laying on her stomach amongst the soldiers bodies. Even as he stood over her, she continued to scream for her sister. He wondered why she didn't get up and run. With a shrug he cocked the gun at her back and fired.

With the death of the soldiers complete, and magua's revenge satisfied, the Huron stood amongst the bodies. Magua made his way to what remained of his warriors and they looked to him, waiting for a sign that all was done. Magua looked at each one in turn for a moment then held the heart of Munro above his head. He threw back his head and let out a whooping cry that was echoed by each man in turn. It was a cry of triumph, a cry of closure, a cry of pain. It meant so many things and nothing at all. At the end of the cry the warriors turned back toward the forest and headed home, leaving the dead to bleed in the dust.

As the Huron warriors left the battlefield, three solitary figures entered. An older man, his dark haired son, and his white son. They stepped into the death with wide eyes, amazed and revolted all at once. Chingachgook and his sons had been following the war party from the Cameron's cabin, thinking them a small band. No small band of dog soldiers could do this much damage. Uncas moved through the bodies like a silent dark ghost, his face passive and torn at the same time. Nathaniel took the other side, his face showing the full horror of the situation.

Nathaniel stopped at the body of a young woman with curly dark hair. She lay on her back, head turned to one side, with a hand curling lightly near her face. He knelt by her body and felt for a pulse but there was none. His eyes lingered on her face and he sighed heavily, running calloused finger tips down her cheek. Even in death she was quite beautiful, it was a horrible waste of life. He stood up to move on when he felt someone grab his ankle. He started and looked down again. A small feminine hand gripped his ankle like iron, a pair of angry brown eyes stared up into his. The same woman he had, moment ago, though dead stared up at him with fire in her eyes.

"Where is my sister," She hissed through clenched teeth.


	2. In His Arms

**In His Arms**

For a moment, Nathaniel could only stare at her. He had been sure she was dead and yet here she was, holding onto his leg and speaking.

"My sister..." She croaked out, spitting blood. "Where...where is Alice?"

He knelt down and pried her fingers off of his leg, then moved to cradle her head with his arm. She sank against his arm but her eyes continued to look at him beseechingly.

"You shouldn't talk miss," He said, looking at the wounds on her shoulders. She grabbed the front of his tunic in that iron-like grip and all but pulled his face down to hers.

"Please," She whispered, "find my sister...find Alice."

He looked at her stricken face and finally nodded, not knowing what else to say to comfort her. He took the hand clutching his tunic into his own and squeezed it.

"We'll look for her, what does she look like?"

The woman's eyes were becoming increasingly unfocused and she gritted her teeth in pain.

"Bl-blonde hair," She stammered, gasping against the pain.

"Pale..pale pink dress, has flowers..."

She tried to say more but it only came out as a sigh. Nathaniel leaned his face down close to hers to see if she was still breathing. Miraculously, she was. He arranged her as comfortably as he could and called to his father and brother. Once they reached his side her looked up at Uncas.

"She's looking for her sister, a girl named Alice. She's got blonde hair, wearing a pink dress...see if you can find her."

Uncas looked uncertain of finding anyone in the sea of bodies but he nodded and went off to look. Chingachgook knelt by his son and studied to wounds on the girls shoulders.

"These are bad wounds," He said in Mohican, "She might very well die."

Nathaniel shook the hair out of his eyes as he worked at getting the top part of her dress off. In the end he had to cut the fabric with a knife.

"She died once already," he answered as the extent of her wounds became more clear.

"I doubt death will bother with her again."

They had to sit her up a little to work the gown down her arms and when they laid her back on the earth, Chingachgook's hands were wet with new blood. To their horror, they discovered she had, not two, but three bullet wounds.

Uncas wandered in the bodies and looked for anyone fitting the description of the injured woman's sister. He had little hope of finding anyone, let alone someone else that might be alive. The battle had left few survivors and the few he did find would be dead in a matter of hours, how was he supposed to find one single blonde girl?

A whimper caught his ear from somewhere nearby. He stopped and listened, trying to find the source. Then he heard a quiet sobbing noise and followed the sound in a northernly direction. He found her nearly sandwiched between two english soldiers. She was curled into a ball with her hands pressed against her chest. Uncas knelt next to her and pulled her body into his arms so he could see her face. Long blonde hair framed a face that was tear streaked and pain-filled. She looked up at him in abject terror, shivering as if she were cold.

"Are you Alice," He asked gently, taking a chance that she might be who he was looking for. She nodded mutely, teeth chattering.

"Are you hurt," He asked, not seeing any real marks on her.

"My legs..." She whispered, he looked at her confusedly.

"I think they're broken."

He looked into her eyes and saw the silent terror flooding them. He looked down at the ends of her skirts but couldn't tell anything from there. He reached a free hand down her body to grab a handful of the material. She whimpered against his chest, shutting her eyes in pain. He pulled the skirt up and balked at the sight of her legs. It was bad, very very bad. He had seen men trampled by cattle with similar injuries, he could only guess what had happened to her.

"I have to move you to take you back to your sister," He told her gently. "It's going to hurt a lot."

"My sister," she responded slowly, as if she didn't understand. "Cora..."

He lifted her from the ground as gently as he could and she cried. He apologized and meant it, he didn't mean to cause her more pain. she opened her eyes and looked into his, her hands still pressed to her chest.

"Why does my chest hurt," she asked, as her hands slid idly away from her bosom. The red stain of a gun shot wound met his eyes as hers began to go dark.

"Alice, don't pass out," He said, carrying her as swiftly as he could back toward the others.

"Stay with me," she mumbled against his neck. "I'm scared."

"I'm here," he reassured her, "You're going to be fine."

though even saying it he wasn't sure he believed it.


	3. To Save You

**To Save You**

None of the men were quite sure how they ended up being the designated caretakers for two injured women. Suffice it to say, that they didn't have it in them to leave them to die in that battlefield. When Uncas made it back to his family, with Alice Munro lying barely conscious in his arms, the decision seemed sealed. At least in the eyes of Chingachgook's youngest son.

There was something different about Uncas as he picked his way around fallen soldiers, shouldering the weight of a woman he didn't know. His father saw it instantly, a flicker of some emotion in an otherwise stony face. It was an unreadable thing, this change in Uncas. Unreadable, but there nonetheless.

"Is she injured," Nathaniel asked as Uncas approached them.

"Shot," Uncas answered as he lowered her to the ground next to her sister.

"Both legs broken."

Chingachgook and Nathaniel exchanged a look, then the older man crept forward. He hiked the heavy skirts up her legs to asses the damage, then lowered them with a shake of the head.

"Those are not clean breaks," He told his sons. "I can set them but it may take her a long time to recover their use. That's only if she survives the gunshot wound."

That unreadable look went through Uncas eyes again as he looked down into the girls pale face. Chingachgook turned his attention back to the dark haired girl and studied her wounds closely. She seemed to be fighting hard, maybe it would be enough to beat death back for awhile.

"What do we do," Nathaniel asked, looking around the smoke filled field. They had been tracking the dog soldiers for the purposes of revenge, but it seemed they were getting more than they bargained for. Now they had these two females to contend with. How had everything gotten so jumbled in such a small period of time?

It took some deliberating on the parts of the boys, but in the end chingachgook decided to help the injured sisters. He truly didn't believe that either girl would live out the night but the determination on his sons faces swayed him. He set the bones in Alice's legs as best he could, and splinted them with branches from the forest. Her heavy dress had to be removed and discarded so that they in turn could move her. Both girls gun shot wounds were bound to stop the bleeding. With both sisters reduced to only undergarments, a decision had to be made as to where to take them. the logical choice would have been a family member but neither girl was conscious enough to answer their questions and staying on the battlefield was not an option. The girls were in no fit state for long travel. In the end it was decided, that they would head back the way they came, toward the village of a friendlier tribe than the Huron.

It was a slow moving journey, even when they switched off carrying the girls. Uncas found it easier to bare Alice's weight across the uneven deer paths than her sisters because she was smaller and lighter. Nathaniel preferred to carry Cora because she moved less and he didn't have to adjust her as often.

When they stopped for the night, all were exhausted and decided to stay where they were until the girls had healed up some. Thus started the process of nursing them back to health, which proved easier said than done. Chingachgook made medicines to help ease their pain and help them sleep while the boys administered to the sisters as best they could. Uncas became the solitary caretaker of Alice because he seemed to know how to get her to take the medicine. The first time Nathaniel tried to give it to her, she screamed at the sight of him and dug her nails into his cheek trying to escape. Uncas saved his brother from from a beating by hauling Alice away from him. She went more docile in his arms, but breathed raggedly and stared at Nathaniel with distrustful eyes.

"Shhhhhhhh," Uncas said as he gathered her in against him, rocking her back and forth like a child.

"He's my brother, you're safe," He murmured to her. She did calm down but nathaniel seemed less than eager to play nursemaid to her again.

Uncas had similar problems with Cora, not that she attacked him when he tried to give her medicine but more that she had a bad habit of spitting it up all over him. Maybe it was the way Nathaniel gave it to her, or even just his presence at her side, she seemed to respond better to him.

Chingachgook worried about fever setting in, especially for Alice with her mangled legs. At night, she would shake, trying to hide her pain. He had seen her fingers dig into the earth in some frail attempt to cling to something. There came a night when Cora pulled herself over to her sister, putting the girls head in her lap. She stroked her hair and hummed a tune, the same tune over and over. Nathaniel watched her worriedly, taking in her flushed cheeks and glazed eyes. Cora seemed to have little idea of the extent of her injuries, or perhaps she didn't care? She sat there, singing her tune over and over, staring at nothing. The men stayed where they were but watched the pair closely.

Cora suddenly stopped singing, and looked straight at the men. They looked at her expectantly, waiting to see if she would speak.

"Can we douse that fire please, Alice is too warm." she said, her voice sounding far away. The fire she spoke of was tiny, enough for light. Her sister was not very close to it.

"It's hot-"she said and then collapsed on her side. Nathaniel rushed to her side, feeling her forehead.

"She's burning up," He said over his shoulder as his father and brother made their way over. Chingachgook lifted one of the girls eyelids and felt her face as Uncas checked Alice. She was sweating profusely, her eyes open but staring beyond him. He felt her face and found that she too was burning up.

"What do we do," Uncas asked his father, his emotions written all over his face.

Chingachgook was silent a moment, trying to think. The sound of rushing water caught his ears. They were near the river and the water might still be cool from the winter.

"Take them to the river," He said, getting slowly to his feet. The boys looked at each other for a moment then picked up the girls and followed.


	4. Beginning To Love

Ok, since I didn't state this in the previous three chapters...I own none of these characters. I make no money off this story at all so please don't sue me.

Well, so far no one has reviewed this story which leads me to conclude one of two things. Either everyone hates this story (Which makes very little sense to me since it's gotten almost 100 hits in three days) or that no one wants to comment on it. I would really like to know if anyone even likes this story and wants me to continue it. So, I'm going to hold off on updating again until I know if anyone wants me to continue. I do have it planned through to the end, just let me know.

**Beginning To Love**

The feeling of cold water hitting her skin brought Alice around with a gasp. Her eyes flew open and around wildly, not sure where she was. All at once, pain shot through her legs and chest and she screamed.

"It's alright," a male voice said from near her ear. She looked up sharply and found a shadowy face staring back at her. Someone was holding her quite tightly in water that was coming up over her chest.

"You have a fever," the voice continued, taking on an odd echo in her ears.

"The water will help.

"Fever," she repeated dumbly, squinting at his face. "I have a fever"

She focused on his face, blinking at the weakness that was trying to re-take her body. In the dark she could make out high cheekbones and long hair. An image went through her mind of the battlefield, a young man lifting her from the ground. Was this the same man? Her memories were jumbled and colliding around in a head that ached horribly. A memory of camp fire, someone gently pouring a liquid down her throat, brown eyes.

"You found me," She mumbled, her head falling against his neck. "After the battle. I remember you."

He didn't say anything to that, only held her in the water with his cheek resting against her forehead.

"Am I going to die," She whispered after a time, when the shock of cold water wore off and pain began to creep up her legs.

"No," He said firmly, his voice tight. It still had that hollow echoing sound she couldn't account for. She reached a pale hand up to his cheek and turned it down toward hers. He looked at her, confused, as she trailed her fingers idly over his face. Her eyes were glassy and fever filled yet still lucid, she smiled at him weakly.

"You have beautiful eyes," She told him, caressing his cheek with her finger tips. The motion was becoming slower, her fingers were trailing away. As her hand dropped he released his hold on her legs and caught the the hand in his own. He supported her in the water with one arm, and spread his fingers between hers so that the palms were touching. She looked at him with only the vaguest of surprise, there faces close enough to touch.

"You won't die, miss" He said gently, "Because I won't let you."

Some small distance away, Nathaniel supported Cora in the water. He held her tightly to his chest as he moved into deeper water. She came around more slowly than her sister had, blinking up at him with a bleary expression. The water felt icy to Cora's hot skin and she whimpered a bit, drawing Nathaniel's attention back to her face.

"Cold," She said, teeth chattering from a mix of fever and sudden temperature change. Everything around her seemed to be wrapped in a shimmering sort of gauze, it might have been pretty if didn't look so unnatural.

"Everything is so cold."

"It's the fever, Miss" Nathaniel responded, trailing water over her forehead with one hand. She flinched away from it involuntarily.

"No more," She pleaded, her fist wrapping itself into his shirt. "Please."

Looking into her face, he felt something twisting in his chest. The first time he saw her, she looked like a woman enraged. Now she looked like a frightened child and he almost did as she asked.

"It will be over soon," He said gently, trailing the water over her face. She whimpered a little and he hushed her. She relaxed after a while, seeming to fall asleep in his arms. He adjusted her weight against him and tried to stay focused on keeping them both above water.

The men stayed in the water until their father called them out. While they tended to the females in the lake, he had been preparing medicine on the shore. He handed each son a wooden bowl that was filled with various herbs and warm tea.

Uncas had to pull Alice into a sort of sitting position and slap her cheeks to bring her around again. Nathaniel pulled Cora up against the front of him, leaning back against a tree and helping her drink the liquid. She held onto his arm as he tilted it too her lips, trying to be helpful, even if she was barely conscious. Uncas supported Alice's head with one hand and pushed the brim of the bowl to her lips. It took some maneuvering, but in the end the medicine ended up in the girls system.

What can one say about the days to come, they were much of the same. When it became obvious that they were not improving quickly enough, Chingachgook went off on his own to try and find some horses. He explained to his sons that he had done all he could with what he knew of medicine but that they truly needed the help of a healer.

Uncas and Nathaniel watched him disappear into the woods and their hearts felt heavy. In spite of themselves, they felt drawn to their respective charges. It was more than a sense of responsibility and something very close to affection. Neither said anything to the other but it was written in their faces. What would it mean for them if the girls survived? what, also, would it mean for them if they died? There were endless questions for them and no answers in sight.

The boys lay at opposite ends of the fire that night, close to their charges. Cora faced away from Nathaniel, curled on her side. He ran trailing fingers through her hair, his face passive. Only his eyes showed emotion, and it was a raw thing.

Uncas watched his brothers idle movements until Alice rolled over and snuggled into his chest. He was startled by the movement, and jumped as she burrowed in against him. His arms went around her awkwardly, unsure of what they were doing. Then they settled around her and it was like the missing piece of a puzzle for him. This idle, unconscious movement on her part solidified something he might have known all along. He brushed stray hair out her face and kissed her forehead, gently. Her, curled there against him, felt perfect.

He raised his eyes and looked across the fire at his brother, their eyes met across that distance. What Uncas felt inside was reflected in his brother eyes for the dark haired girl beside him. Whatever happened with the girls, one thing was clear; Uncas and Nathaniel would never be the same again.


	5. It's You

As promised, I said i would update once I got a review . I'm still amazed at the amount of people that loved 'What Lies Between", I never expected it to be that well received. I wrote it out of a desire to see Uncas and Alice live and give them the story time the movie denied them, I'm glad to see others are still enjoying it. Now, I should probably explain a little about where this chapter came from first. I don't put much stock in soul mates, I don't really believe that there is just one person for each of us though I do like the idea of it. This installment came out of a story my friend told me when she first kissed her last boyfriend. She said it all felt as if they had done it a million times and the experience just floored them. I can see Alice and Uncas having a similar experience so that where the idea came from. I also wrote this at a request from a reviewer (You know who you are .) for more detailed Uncas and Alice scenes. I do take requests so if there is something you would like to see, and I can make it work, I will try my best to put it in the story. Anyway, on to the chapter...

**It's You**

Alice was adrift in a sea of dreams, filled with dark eyes and smoke. In her dream she wandered the dark halls of her home in England, but the house was filled with the bodies of the battlefield. She walked through them, stepping over the fallen and bleeding, unable to stop or turn back. Ahead of her, down the long stretch of hallway she saw the dark haired man. He stood very still in a doorway, a hand stretched out toward her. As if an invisible magnetic force were in her chest she walked toward him. Creeping closer and closer as the hallway seemed to grow impossibly long.

"Wait," She whispered, extending a hand as he slid farther and farther away from her.

Then, out of nowhere, a hand grabbed her by the throat and lifted her off of her feet. Out of the shadows stepped the man with his face painted black. Her hands scrabbled at his arms, scratching, trying to get him to release her. He pulled her close to him, so that her face was inches from his, so close she could see the lines around his eyes. She heard the clicking sound of a gun from somewhere nearby and opened her mouth to scream.

Alice came out of the dream in a thrashing of limbs, fighting at the arms that were wrapped tightly about her. Forgetting that her legs were broken, she tried to get to her feet and run. She was rewarded for her effort with sharp pains that cascaded throughout the limbs. She fell onto her stomach and began to scream.

All at once, arms were gathering her up, pulling her up against something solid. Everything happened so quickly that she didn't have time to register who it was that held her. There was a soft shirt against her cheek, a dark hand brushing hair out of her face. She looked up into the eyes of the young Indian man, the one who's name escaped her at the moment.

"Shhhhhhhhhhh," He hushed her, bringing a cool cloth to her hot face. "You're safe, it was just a dream."

"I'm sorry," She said in a shaky whisper, feeling tears trailing down her face.

He looked at her confused, tilting his head to the side a bit. They were in a sitting position near a fire, he was cradling her in one arm while he bathed her face in cool water.

"Why are you apologizing, everyone dreams. I think your fever makes them more vivid."

She shook her head, placing a hand over his as he brought the cloth back to her face.

"I'm sorry because...because I can't remember your name. You've been taking care of me but I-" She trailed off, embarrassed as he studied her face in the fire light.

"You don't know my name," He said carefully as he ran the cool cloth over her forehead, "Because I never told it to you, you've been in and out of consciousness for days."

He was silent for a moment as the cloth was discarded and a wooden bowl brought into sight. He brought it to her lips and tipped the contents into her mouth. The liquid tasted odd, of cinnamon and cloves with a hint of something else. When she had swallowed it all he laid the bowl aside and took the cloth up again.

"Uncas," He said softly, "My name is Uncas."

"Uncas," She repeated, studying his face in the light.

He was a very handsome man, unlike any she had ever seen in London. He had high arching eyebrows over eyes that were carmel colored. The light danced in his eyes as they roved over her face.

"Why are you helping us," She asked him, her eyes still stuck on the line of his jaw and the shape of his lower lip. He paused for a moment, considering the question, but seemed to find no answer so therefore did not give one.

How do you tell someone of feelings that you don't understand yourself? How can you explain that they just fit against you, that even though you don't know anything about them, that they have your heart? This was Uncas dilemma, so he chose not to answer. Instead he looked into her eyes, and hid nothing in his.

Alice gazed back at him as if an invisible line attached their eyes. She had never looked at any man so intently, or returned a gaze with such boldness. She could almost name every emotion she saw in his eyes. There was an undefined need, tenderness, affection, and something else. She wasn't ready to name the something else, not yet, but it shone as brightly as the others. Her throat went suddenly dry and her already flushed face seemed to grow hotter.

"What's happening," She whispered, unable to look away, not wanting to.

"I don't know," He answered quietly. In spite of his better judgment his head was inching closer to hers.

"We shouldn't-" She protested weakly, not putting up any effort to stop it.

"I know," His face was inches from hers now. There was a moment of pause, a chance for either to escape. Their eyes searched each other in the fire light, Alice finally closed hers and tilted her head upward.

"God help me," She whispered, and he closed the rest of the distance.

They kissed as if they knew each other well, as if it were not the first time. His lips felt familiar to Alice and she forgot any indecision she had prior to this moment. He pulled her as close to him as he could get her, wrapping his arms around her and cupping the back of her head with his hands. She, in turn, folded her hands into his hair, breath quickening against the kiss.

She gasped into his mouth, surprised at the feeling surging through her body. The familiarity of his body, his taste. His tongue dipped into her mouth and stole all rational thought away.

Oh, it was improper, what she was doing. Kissing a man that she barely knew, letting him hold her intimately. She didn't care, she would give many things to keep this moment forever. Their tongues danced against each other, breathing quickened, quiet moaning noises were muffled against swollen lips. When it ended they were breathless, holding onto each others faces.

"Did you feel that," She asked, hoping she wasn't crazy or dreaming again.

"Was it real?"

He rubbed his thumbs along her cheeks, not quite believing it himself. His people believed that there was one person for everyone. One person that completed them and that when you found that one person, you would know. He had never believed the stories until now.

"It's you," he said in disbelief, not knowing quite what he meant by the comment yet understanding it completely. It made no sense and made perfect sense. He knew this woman as he knew himself.

They lay on their sides and studied each others faces with their hands, memorizing every curve. There were no words, there didn't need to be. Everything was raw and open on their faces. How many times, in how many lives had they found each other this way? Was it the same every time? How did they know with such certainty that what they felt was real?

The answer is simple; They just did.


	6. I Belong To Him

Okay, i wrote this while listening to a song so thats where the death like sequence came from. sorry this is short, I'm getting married soon and i've been busy with wedding stuff so updating was kinda postponed. thank you for the reviews and please tell me if there's a scene or interaction you would like to see. I'm a little stuck on what I want to do with the next few chapters.

**I Belong To Him**

Their moment in the firelight was sweet and short-lived. The following morning, both girls fell into deep delirious sleeps from which there seemed no waking. Nathaniel and Uncas shared frantic glances as their charges fevers raged and feared the worst if their father didn't return soon.

To lose someone you've only just found, there are not words to describe it. Uncas could see pain written on his brother's face as his own pain seemed to consume him. Alice moaned in her sleep, called his name, even when he was inches from her she did not see him. There were moments when he thought he might go mad.

Then their father arrived, looking a bit worn with two horses in tow. Very little was said between the three men as gear was packed up and the girls arranged for travel. Since their father was travel weary, Nathaniel walked along side the horses while cora and her father rode along. Uncas, of course, held Alice on the other horse. They traded off this way until they came to a Sioux Village a few nights later. All three men were nearly asleep on their feet when they wandered into the camp. After some explanation from chingachgook as to why they were there, some village women came forward from the girls. Even as tired as they were, Nathaniel and Uncas had a hard time giving them up to the care of the village. They had trusted only themselves with the girls for so long that it hurt to watch others take them away.

Uncas might have followed if his father hadn't caught his arm, gently telling him he needed to think of his own health now. He would do Alice no good if he too fell ill. He watched her disappear into a hut with a heavy heart and looked back many times as they were led away. In a few hours time the women sent for him with the worst possible news; Alice Munro was dying.

Alice felt as though she were floating in limbo, a gray empty space where time had no meaning. Out of the emptiness came the sound of music, soft, low. She looked around her and the grayness melted away. She was standing in snow, surrounded by the trees of the forest. It should have been cold but somehow she felt no such chill. with the exception of tall trees, everything was white and she wondered briefly if she had died.

She turned in mad circles, hearing a voice to the music and felt a tingling warmth that started in her belly and seemed to spread throughout her limbs. The voice pulled her forward through the snow drifts, the lovely singing voice, it's beauty made her want to weep.

"Who are you," She called out, "Where are you,"

The voice sang on, something about eternity and the wings of time. Alice was compelled to follow that song, to sing with it and join it's chorus. She needed to sing with that chorus. Then, faintly, she heard her name, she stopped. The voice sang on, beckoning her. She heard her name again, a little louder. She turned from the music, a third time her name was called, a voice she knew.

"Uncas," She responded quietly. She took a step back the way she had come. He called for her again, she answered his call. The pull of the music intensified, the warm tingle almost a burning sensation. She shook her head and ignored it.

"Uncas," She called again, moving faster toward his voice. Her limbs were on fire now and she screamed as she began to run. The music was louder now, deafening, trying to draw her back. She was almost to his voice now, she could hear him so clearly. The burn staggered her, as if she were being shot all over again. It was like invisible hands reaching for her. She turned turned back to the music and balled her fists at her side.

"No," She yelled at it, "I belong to him," she pointed behind her into nothingness.

"Do you hear me," she shouted, "I belong to him."

The music blared in her ears, her limbs still burned, but the invisible pull receded. Call it what you will, a surrender, a truce, whatever it was the battle was over and she had won. Alice ran into darkness with the song ringing in her ears.

Alice awoke with a gasp, like a swimmer coming out of deep water. She opened her eyes and saw his face, his eyes, as he stared down at her. She could vaguely hear the sound of female voices in the room, talking a in a language she didn't understand. She didn't look for them, only at him.

"I heard you," She whispered to him and raised a hand to stroke his cheek. He pressed his hand against hers, holding it to his cheek.

"For a moment I lost you," He whispered back, "I felt you leave."

she smiled faintly at him and felt very tired, but it was the tiredness that comes with recovery. Somehow she knew she had beaten the illness, she had cheated death. He pulled her up against him in a tight embrace, she snaked her arms around his neck weakly and held him.

"Only for a moment," She said gently.

"Only for a moment"


	7. Singing Bird And Fire In Her Eyes

Ok, this chapter was written mostly about Cora because she and Nathaniel were getting a little ignored. The focus of this story is going to be mostly Uncas and Alice though, I find their relationship a bit easier to write. Anyway, the next few chapters with be character interaction and relationship stuff. Yes, there will probably be intimate chapters coming up too..

anyway, heres chapter 7. Hope you enjoy it!

"**Singing Bird and Fire In Her Eyes**"

The sisters recovered quickly enough in the care of the villagers, though Cora took a bit longer than her sister to pull through the fever. Alice was weak for many days following her brush with death. Uncas stayed rooted to her side until the village men pulled him away to go hunting, save for them he might not have moved at all.

Alice's legs were still an issue and the village women were skeptical that she would ever walk again. This was explained to Alice by Uncas and she took the news surprisingly well, holding on to the hope that everything would work out. When she was well enough, the women took her outside and taught her how to weave baskets. The youngest munro girl proved to be quite adept with her hands and caught on quickly. She caught onto many things quickly and in a few weeks time she could speak a limited amount of the sioux language, pantomiming whatever she didn't know how to say with her hands.

She also earned herself an Indian name, soon after she learned to weave. Alice was a diligent worker, and finished her weaving at double the pace of a lot of the other women. when she would work, she would sing songs. Any song that came into her head, from church hymns to christmas carols, even nursery rhymes. She had a sweet voice, the kind that carried serenely on the air and though they didn't understand the words, the village women soon began to work near her. Some would hum along to her tune and she would smile when she noticed. They gave her the name "Singing Bird" because that was what her voice reminded them of.

Uncas came to see her after every hunting trip and she greeted him with a smile. The other women would giggle when they saw him coming and gather their things to leave, trying to give them some semblance of privacy. There was no jealousy among these people, no sense of competition. These two young people belonged to each other and that, as they say, was that.

Cora, being the slower of the two to heal, was restricted to the healing huts for some time. When she did heal up enough to move around again, they found she had trouble with her arms. She was unable to lift anything very heavy nor did her arms want to lift very high above her head. Through it all she never whined or cried, she bore everything with a smoldering fire in her eyes. This was the name the Sioux woman gave her as a result; "Fire In Her Eyes"

Nathaniel came to see her frequently but she seemed ill at ease with him, barely lifting her eyes to look at his face. She answered him quietly when he asked her a question and tried to seem busy when he was around. Like, Alice she was given a weaving task but hers was sleeping mats rather than baskets. It was easier on her wounded shoulders and only really required the use of her hands.

"Hawkeye favors you," An older Sioux woman told her one day, one of the few that spoke English. Cora looked up at the woman's teasing smile then quickly looked down again.

"He does not know me," she responded, her fingers moving faster than they had before. The older woman chuckled and laid a wrinkled hand over Cora's.

"Why are you afraid of him," She asked. Cora froze and didn't know how to respond. She wasn't afraid of him, quite the opposite in fact. The rules of conduct were different in this american wilderness and she didn't know how to talk to him.

"It is not fear," She said, sitting back on her heels to look at the woman. She wrung her hands in front of her and tried to find words to explain.

"I do not," she paused, thought and tried again. "I do not know how to speak to him. The rules I am accustomed to no longer apply."

She sighed and her shoulders slumped a little. She pulled her knees up to her chest and peered at the old woman over them. She rested her chin on them before she spoke again.

"I have never been in love before."

There it was, the blunt and honest truth. She had barely admitted it to herself and yet there it was. She loved him. He had found her, nursed her through her injuries. It was his face she saw before her even when he thought she was unconscious. It was his arms that held her when she shook from fever. Somewhere, in the midst of all that she had fallen in love with him...she didn't know what to do with that.

That night, she was sitting outside the hut, staring at the stars when he came and plopped himself down next to her. She started to suddenly see him there and for the first time in a while, didn't lower her eyes. There was a long moment of staring, without words and it should have been awkward. Somehow, it wasn't. In his eyes she could see the whole world, and they seemed to offer her everything. Nathaniel opened his mouth to speak but she placed her fingers over his mouth to shush him.

"They say you favor me, the other women." She said quietly, searching his eyes with hers.

"I know that i've been...distant with you. I'm sorry-"

He cut her off by moving her hand with one of his and leaning in to kiss her. The movement was sudden and not what she expected. She blinked in surprise for a moment, then with her palms pressed against his chest kissed him back. It was passionate and tender at the same time and when he broke the kiss she had to take a moment to relearn how to breath.

"You talk too much," He whispered, with his forehead pressed against hers. She opened her mouth to respond or retort and he silenced her with another kiss.


	8. A Pang Of Doubt

ok, heres another fun little fluff chapter, plus it gave me a chance to write in more dialogue. I kinda like angry Uncas, he's cute when he's angry. Enjoy chapter 8 everyone.

**A Pang of Doubt**

The next few days, weeks, and months were wonderful for the couples. It was like living in a dream were everything is rose colored and reality can't settle in and change everything. The Sioux village was extremely kind to all of them, so much so that no one wanted to leave. Not that they could yet anyway, not with Alice still unable to walk.

Her condition, though it should have been extremely frustrating was handled with the upmost grace. She took each day as it came, and when she was told yet again that she might never walk she accepted the news admirably.

While the weather was nice, the village women would take her to the meadow to work. On one such day, when they were in the process of scrapping hides clean. One of the women asked her an important question.

"Singing Bird, " She said in Sioux, "You and Uncas will marry soon. Will you settle here?"

The statement and question caught her off guard.

"Marry," she repeated it in a questioning tone, they hadn't discussed marriage at all. He had courted her for sometime now, but they hadn't thought that far ahead. Did everyone really assume they were about to marry?

White Fox laughed at her expression and gave her a teasing grin.

"Why so surprised, he spends no time with any other women. I suspect he'll ask you soon."

Alice felt her face heat up and suddenly didn't know what to say. She had never had cause to be nervous with Uncas before now, but suddenly she was. How would she act around him tonight with this news?

"You've embarrassed her with your silly chatter," Owl Circling chastised when she saw Alice's face. She patted the young girl on the shoulder with a gentle hand and glared a bit at the others.

"Leave her be, she has other things to worry about."

Owl Circling was referring, of course, to Alice's legs and something close to panic rose in her chest. What kind of wife would she be to him with two useless legs? He needed a wife that could keep up with him, not one he had to carry everywhere. For the first time since she met him, she felt a pang of despair.

Alice carried that feeling with her all day and that evening she was quiet when he came to see her. Uncas was quiet with the others, but once he was alone with her he talked a mile a minute. Telling her everything he did or thought about doing that day. She listened quietly, and responded, but even to herself she sounded sad.

That feeling of discontent grew with each passing day, until she no longer sang when she worked. Three days later she was alone in her hut when she decided to try to use her legs. It had been months, they should have healed enough to try. She wrapped her hands around the pole that stood upright in the middle of the hut and used her arms to haul herself upward. Once her feet were lightly touching the ground, she lowered herself onto them. Pain shot up her legs and she gasped, tears ran down her face. She gritted her teeth and released the pole, putting her weight fully on the legs.

She stayed upright for maybe a moment before her legs gave out and she fell to a painful heap. White hot fire raced up and down the limbs as she lay there gasping, having knocked the wind out of herself.

"Dammit," She swore when she could breath again and pounded her fist against the ground.

At that moment, Uncas came through the flap into her hut and she froze. She must have looked ridiculous, lying there in a heap on the floor. She looked at him, standing there and it was as if everything she had kept inside for the last three days came flooding out. She tried to say something, failed, then buried her face in her hands and cried. He came to her and removed her hands from her face, trying to figure out what was going on. She pushed him away gently and wouldn't look at him.

"Alice, what happened?" He asked, trying to turn her face to look at him. She did, but didn't have the words to explain. The concern and love in his eyes was so raw she might have been able to touch them.

"Talk to me," He pleaded, wiping away her tears. The sweetness of that gesture brought them back to her eyes.

She hugged him then, tightly. holding on to him as if he were an anchor in a storm. Her thoughts were in turmoil because of some silly gossip, how could one small question change everything she had known up until now?

"I'm damaged," She whispered, "What good am I to you or anyone else?"

She felt him stiffen and he pushed her back by the shoulders to look into her face, there was anger in his eyes.

"Who told you that," He looked ready to kill someone, she had never seen that look on his face.

"No one," She said, shaking her head. "I just know it's true. I know it's true now."

She ducked her head and he lifted it back up by putting his fingers under her chin. Those eyes she loved so much stared into hers and made her catch her breath just a little.

"Now, you listen to me Alice Munro," he said firmly. "I love you, and you are not damaged. If you never walk again, I will still love you."

She rubbed her face against the palm that was now cupping her cheek and brought her own hand up to cover his. His closeness was always her undoing, and she momentarily lost her ability to think. When he brought his other hand up to cup her other cheek, her breath came out in a sigh.

"I love you too," She whispered, surprised that this was the first time they had said it. In all the months, in all the moments, this was the first time.

He leaned in and kissed her, moving his hands from her face to her waist and pulling her in against him. It was a long kiss, passionate, promising everything and more for the future.

Alice put aside her doubts then and forever. She chastised herself for having them at all. She kissed him deeply and let the world drop out from beneath her.


	9. Madness and It's Kinks

I know this is totally late in coming and I guess an explanation is is order. You see, back when I started this story it was my refuge from a job that I despised. My..well.. now husband was overseas and I was alone for about a month. Last summer I quit said job and became busy with the finding of a new job. It took up a great deal of time and when I started the new one I was too tired to write...but the stories were always sitting at the back of my mind, patiently waiting to be written. I received more reviews than I could count, asking me to finish. So here is the next chapter which will take us into the second half.

Enjoy!

**Madness and It's Kinks**

Magua dug his knife into the ground all the way to the hilt and pulled it out again. He studied the blade closely, turning it over and watching the mud slide off the blade. This was the knife he had used to kill the grey-hair. He had slid it into the man's chest, wet it with his blood, and taken his revenge. It was over and done.

He slammed the blade back into the ground with a vicious thrust.

Then why did he feel this way?

Life was empty now that his lust for revenge had been appeased. He had focused so long on one single purpose that he now had nothing left to do with himself. All the planning and waiting and now here he sat, stabbing the ground and feeling, for all intents and purposes, bored. He needed something to take his mind off his lack of purpose but there was nothing he could think of to fill that empty space.

"Two white women," he vaguely heard two men talking. "supposedly very pretty, hair like the moon..."

It was this comment that got his attention, caused him to lean closer. Hair like the moon? The youngest munro child had a similar description but she was dead, he had shot her himself and watched her bleed out. Still, the description was too close for comfort.

"They say the dark haired one is not to be trifled with," One warrior said, laughing. The other grinned like a fool, probably imagining this woman as a bed partner.

"I heard they nearly died, shot they said."

Magua nearly jumped out of his own skin and suddenly knew without a doubt that the women they spoke of were the Munro children. He launched himself the few feet across camp and nearly lifted the smaller man by his neck. He felt the fire rekindling under his skin, that familiar feeling of vengeance creeping back into his veins.

"Where are these women," He growled into the man's startled face, bringing his own close so the other could see his fury. His friend grabbed Magua's arm and went for his tomahawk as Magua whipped his head around with a snarl. It was a warning best heeded and the warrior stepped away with startled eyes.

"Where.Are.They?" He asked between clenched teeth, "Do not make me ask you again."

The man choked out a response and Magua realized he couldn't speak around the pressure on his throat, he loosened his grip but did not release him.

"Down the river," The warrior gasped, "Two days walk north, with the river people."

Magua narrowed his eyes at the man and tried to fathom how they could survive. The warrior answered the question for him.

"Mohicans brought them there, found the girls on a ...battlefield..."

Magua dropped him as suddenly as he had grabbed him and stomped off through the gathered crowd. He jumped onto the nearest horse and started north, ignoring the frantic owner that chased him out of camp. He would find the Munro girls and he would finish what he started. He would watch them die and this time stay until they were gone. This time, however, he would kill them slowly. He would take the time he didn't take before and this time, it would be more satisfying.

As for the Mohican men that saved them, they would be dealt with later. They were of little consequence in the here and now. They had spoiled his revenge and would pay the price, but first the girls were to be dealt with.

Magua smiled darkly as he pushed the horse into the forest. Anger and madness felt good and familiar, his old constant companions. They rode alongside him into the gathering dusk.

Ok, it may be awhile before I move onto the next chapter only because I don't know exactly how to handle some scenes. Do I know what I want to happen,,,the answer is yes! Do I know how I want to right...unfortunately ...no! So I have some thinking to do. anyway...back to the drawing board.


	10. Darkness on the Edge

Ok, so I guess I'm updating this as I update my other story. seems to work out, as long as I don't start mixing up characters. We went out drinking tonight and I joked that if I got drunk and then started writing that the scene would end with them going to a dance party. Thankfully I did not get drunk and we are left with the scene you are about to read. Hope y'all like it!

**Darkness on the Edge**

Magua came upon the river in midmorning and heard the sounds of women talking. He crept through the trees silently and peeked out of the brush to see if what he sought was there. This was the grounds of the river people, with any luck the Munroe sisters would be here. On the edge of the lake he saw a blonde girl with her legs dangling in the water. She turned her head to the side and gave him her profile. He knew in that moment that it was the youngest girl. He peered out over the water to look for the other one but found her too far out to get to easily. The blonde one was closest, and easiest to grab.

But what to do when he had her? He needed the other as well, if his revenge was to be complete. Then there were the men that had spoiled it all, how to get them in place. An idea came to his mind like a crack of thunder. There was an area east of the huron lands that they called the "Stone Barrens." It was named for the miles and miles of tall jagged rocks that graced the landscape. He had played there as a child and it was perfect for hiding. If he could lead them there, he could pick them off one by one. All he needed was a reason for them to follow him, and that reason sat a few feet away singing to herself. He smiled at the Idea and slowly crept out behind her.

Alice sat on the rivers edge and washed the newly scraped leathers. Her sister and the other women were out in the deeper water cleaning the bigger pieces. She tried to reason through what had happened the night before. Why she had panicked like that. It was a stupid thing to do, trying to walk like that. For all she knew, she had made the damage worse. She smiled to herself a little then. One good thing had happened, Uncas had told her he loved her. She had known already but hearing it had made her heart light.

She looked across the water at her sister and smiled again. Cora had the same happy look in her own eyes. In all this horror they had found something worth keeping. Her sister looked up at her and waved, Alice waved back. Then Cora's face changed, the smile turning into a wide-eyed stare. Alice narrowed her eyes in confusion when a pair of rough hands grabbed her from behind. They jerked her backwards and pulled her in against a bare chest.

The other women cried out and ran forward, some of them had knives and made their way toward Alice.

"BACK, ALL OF YOU" he barked at them and brought a knife to Alice's throat. she screamed in pain as he hauled her to her feet, they dangled like a couple of rags.

"Alice," Her sister cried, trying to get to her as the other women held her back. "I'll kill you, you bastard, if you hurt her!"

The man laughed loudly in Alice's ear and she watched as a few women slipped away and ran back toward the village calling for the men. It wouldn't take them long to get there but in a short span of time this mad man could kill her. She decided to take a chance, better to go down fighting than let him gut her. She bit down on his hand as hard and she could and tasted blood. He screamed and dumped her to the ground. She hit painfully and tried to drag her self back toward the water. The man recovered quickly and grabbed her by the hair, hauling her up painfully.

"That was very stupid, Munroe child," He said, turning her to face him. "Believe me you will pay dearly for it, now get up."

The others yelled out as he once again tried to force her to stand, not seeming to understand that her legs wouldn't work. Her head was exploding in pain where he was pulling her hair upward. She gasped and gritted her teeth as white spots exploded in front of her eyes.

"Stop," Cora was screaming "She can't walk!"

The man hauled her into his arms like a sack, tossing her painfully over one shoulder. She beat at his back with her fists as he ran with her into the woods. He tossed her over a horses back and the wind was knocked out of her. Then he climbed up next. He turned her until she was sitting in front of him and put the knife to her neck again.

"One sound from you, one scream, and I swear you'll regret it."

"It was you," She whispered, tears starting to run down her face. "It was you that shot us. Good God, what do you want now?"

He didn't answer but punched at one of her legs with his fists, causing her to scream. She could feel herself starting to pass out from the pain. Somewhere behind them she could hear voices, She could hear her sister and Uncas. Then the horse was speeding off through the trees and all she heard was Uncas screaming her name.

"They rode off to the south, toward Huron land," Nathaniel said, looking at the horses tracks and wiping his hands on his pants. His father and brother nodded, looking off in that direction.

"Then that's' the way we go," Uncas said and there was an underlying current of anger in his voice. Nathaniel could tell from the look on his brothers face that the Huron would pay dearly. He might live through this if they found Alice alive but he would surely suffer if she died. He had to stop Uncas from running blindly after her. His eyes had been crazed, something he had never seen in the young man before.

'There are three of us and one of him, We should be able to overtake him easily enough. That is if we can catch him before he reaches the Huron village." Their father said, shouldering his pack and unconsciously pulling a weapon from his belt.

"Four," said a female voice from behind them. They turned to find Cora Munro leading two horses.

"I'm coming with you!"


	11. Protect It

Well, heres the next chapter of the story. I should say thank you to all the people who left reviews telling me how much they like this story. I never expected it to get this much attention..it was just something that was in my head. I hope you all continue to read as I go on with this.

This chapter contains some sexual content, I'm gonna warn you before hand. In fact, the next few chapters might have it depending on what I want to do. We'll see, but I hope everyone enjoys the read and I will try to get the next chapter up as soon as i have time to write again.

**Protect It**

Alice stared at her captor across the fire with less than friendly eyes. He, for his part, ignored her. He cut off long strips of meat from a deer haunch with his knife and chewed slowly, looking at anything but her. Alice looked down at her bound hands and twisted them to try and loosen the ropes. In response they cut into her wrists and made them bleed.

They had traveled all day, though she had no idea how far away they were from from the village of the river people. She had been unconscious a good portion of the ride, and he had knocked her about until she was quiet for the rest of it.

"Are you hungry, Moon Child," He asked, causing her to look up. He refused to use her name, instead calling her "Munro girl" or "Moon Child." She straightened her spine and glared at him, she hoped he choked.

"Here, eat it," He said and flung some meat across the fire at her. It hit her in the face and slid wetly down one cheek, only to land in her lap. Magua smiled, pleased with himself.

"Why are you doing this," She asked quietly. 'I've done nothing to you. You've already killed my father, just leave us in peace."

Her speech did nothing if not get his attention. His head snapped in her direction and a cold fire smoldered just beyond his eyes.

"You speak of peace," He asked in a cold voice. "I haven't known any peace these many years and that I lay at your fathers feet."

"And now he's dead," She said back, "You have had your revenge, now let me go!"

He laughed at her then, not cold and derisive laughter but a full belly chuckle.

"You think it is so easy," He responded when the laughter subsided. Then he shook his head. "No, Munro Girl, my revenge will only be complete when you and your sister are dead. Then maybe there will be peace for me."

She was quiet for a moment, as a cold feeling slipped down her spine. Whatever her father had done, whether or not he was dead, mattered very little. She and her sister would suffer for his sins and they didn't even know what those sins were.

"What did my father do to you," She asked quietly. Magua was silent for so long that she looked up to make sure he had heard her. His eyes were slightly glazed, lost in some far off memory. Just when she was about to repeat the question he began to speak, and wove a tale about a man she thought she knew. The story was horrible, riddled with wrongs she thought her father would never be capable of doing. When it was over there was a spark of pity in her for this man who had caused her such anguish. Just a spark, and it must have shown in her eyes. Suddenly he was angry, he leapt around the fire and forced her to the ground, holding that familiar knife to her throat again.

"Take that pity from your eyes before I cut them out," He roared into her face. "I will not have pity from anyone, least of all from you."

She shut her eyes and turned her head away, gritting her teeth as he pulled on her hair.

"You hear me," He yelled again. She nodded, hating the tears that pooled in her eye from the pain he was causing her. He released her quickly and she heard his footsteps pounding away. She didn't know where he was going in the dark but wherever it was, it was away from her. She sat up and looked around the woods, trying to decide if she could drag herself into the woods and escape. How far could she get at a crawl before he caught her? That escape route seemed unlikely on so many levels, she would leave an obvious trail and he would easily be able to find her. Her mind went back to that night in the tent, when she had tried to stand. She looked down at her useless legs and wondered. She had not tried to walk again since, maybe all she needed was the time in which to do it. She looked around her and saw a thinner young tree to her left. It had a lower hanging branch the she could grasp onto if she could get up to it. Maybe it could help her build some strength back into her legs? She pulled herself along with her bound hands and made her way to the tree. Once there she found another problem, with bound hands she couldn't easily pull herself up the tree. She sighed in frustration and looked around until she saw Maguas hatchet, laying against a nearby pack. She put the rope over the blade and sawed at them until the fell off. She rubbed her wrists as she looked back up at the tree. This would be difficult and she was quite sure it would hurt like hell. She wrapped her arms around the thin trunk and began to heave her self up a little at a time. It was hard work, and difficult, but once she found where that branch veered off from the trunk, it became much easier.

The branch put her feet almost solidly on the ground but with little weight on the legs as she held herself up with the branches help. She took a deep breath and tried to move one foot forward. It went, but stiffly. She winced and moved the other forward. It was much the same. She did this for a small span of time, moving the legs in one direction or another until they moved a bit easier. When her feet were together again, she readied herself to let go of the branch. If she had any hope of escaping, she needed to do it on her own feet. She released the branch slowly, and stood only a few moments before her legs crumbled beneath her in a painful heap. She lay there crying for two reasons. One was from pain, the other was from happiness. She had managed to stand. Only for a brief moment, but she had done it. Surely, given time, she would be able to walk again. She looked around for the rope pieces and loosely rebound her own hands. She would do this whenever he was gone if she had to. She would escape, one way or another.

The four travelers followed Magua's path until their horses were ready to fall over in exhaustion. Once it became to dark, they had to stop. They set up camp near the river, while Uncas separated himself to stare into the water. He didn't eat with them, or at all as far as anyone could tell. He just watched the river, flow away, as if he were searching the water for her face. It was Nathaniel who finally approached him. The younger man nearly jumped out of his skin when Nathaniel laid a hand on his shoulder.

"We'll find her," He told Uncas as he shoved a loaf of bread into his hands. "but until then you need to eat."

Uncas did as his brother said but the movements were mechanical at best, he looked as if he didn't care.

"Fire In Her Eyes," He said speaking slowly. "How is she doing?"

"Worried, but unlike you, she's at least making an attempt to rest. Come back to the fire and eat."

"I am going to kill him." The younger man stated simply. It was a statement of fact, like saying that the sky is blue. Nathaniel just stared at him.

"What if she's already dead? What if we don't make it?"

Uncas didn't look at him, but kept talking.

"She's alive," he stated simply. "I know it, I know it in my gut. "

"How would you know that?" His brother asked. He knew Uncas loved the girl but there was something deeper going on here and he had never heard Uncas talk about anyone this way.

"She is my _Tah._" He said quietly and walked away. Nathaniel just stared after him. What he had just said was very personal and important in the Mohican culture. It was perhaps the most important thing a Mohican man could say about his woman.

He had just called Alice Munro his heart.

Alice dreamt of Uncas that night , or more specifically, of the night she had tried to walk and he had found her. She dreamt about it in snatches at first, little flashes of pictures and words. His face above hers, the feeling of his hands on her. She heard his voice as it whispered intimate things into her ear. No one knew what had happened that night but them, she hadn't even told her sister. She could feel him moving in her, feel his skin under her splayed fingers. In the dream, he kissed her passionately and she responded by arching against him.

"You must be careful," The dream Uncas said as he drove himself into her, the rhythm increasing.

"I will, "She responded with a gasp, remembering, vaguely, that this conversation had never occurred.

"You must protect it," He told her as he pulled her pelvis up hard against him, maneuvering her hips against his. He was upright, on his knees, with her legs spread over his. She was on her back as he pulled her body forward, pushing himself in deeply. She cried out.

"You must protect it," He said again, his voice calm in spite of what he was doing.

"Protect what," She asked him, feeling as though her body were on fire.

"You'll know," He said as he increased the frequency of his thrusts. Alice came with a scream, and awoke with a jerk.

She saw the sun just starting to lighten the sky and heard the faint snores of Magua from nearby.

_"Protect it,_" Dream Uncas voice was whispering in her head. She didn't know what It was she was supposed to be protecting. It was probably just a dream anyway, albeit an erotic one. She started to get up when a wave of nausea poured over her like water. She doubled over and vomited up what little food was in her stomach. Her retching brought Magua around and he glared at her from his place by the fire.

"You better not do that all day," He threatened. "Because we are not stopping again until night fall."

She didn't even look at him, as she tried to take deep breathes.

_"Protect it,"_ the voice said over and over. She pulled her hair out of her face and covered her mouth with her other hand.

She was just beginning to understand what "it" might be, and her situation became much more dangerous.


	12. Look For Me

ok, we are on to chapter 12. The first part of this came out of dreams I used to have when i was younger. I would have theses dreams where I couldn't get out of a bad situation so I would pretend to pass out. Usually the dream resulted in someone carrying me around as I waited for them to turn their back so I could run. They were really odd dreams but thats where this idea came from.

This chapter also has sexual content. Whether or not I do another sex scene depends on where I'm at in the rest of the story. I really didn't intend to put any sex in this story at all but we see what happened to that idea. Oh well, I hope you like the chapter.

**Look for Me**

Magua pushed them hard over the next two days, and stopped very infrequently. Alice still found herself vomiting, usually only in morning and mid day. She managed to keep down very little of what she ate. She also discovered that at night, Magua slept fairly heavily. If she was quiet, she could practice trying to walk without waking him. So far, she had only managed to move her legs in a walking motion when there was a low enough tree branch to hold on to. Otherwise she had to settle for holding onto the trunk of tree and practice standing. She wasn't very good at any of it yet, but every time that her legs gave her that little bit, she was closer to her goal. The problem was that she needed Magua to slow down for a day or two so she could get more time in. She got her idea the day that he stopped to study something on the side of the path. He dismounted and crouched to look at something on the trail. She suddenly had an idea that would fit in perfectly with her bouts of vomiting. As his back was turned, she leaned side ways in the saddle until she was almost dangling off the side. She hung like that for a moment, with only her leg gripping the animals sides, it was a weak hold as her legs were only moderately stronger. Then she let herself fall to the side onto the path. It was an uncomfortable hit, but not horribly painful. She shut her eyes and pretended to faint.

Alice could hear Magua shift and assumed he was turning to look at her. She kept very still as his footsteps came toward her, then there was another rustling sound as he knelt. She didn't move, and forced herself to take longer breaths. If this worked, he might think she was sick and stop for the day.

"Girl," He prodded her shoulder with something hard, she didn't move.

"GIRL," He said louder and gave her shoulder a shake, still she didn't move.

She heard him curse in his native language, then his hands were on her as he tried to shift her into his arms. Strangely, he picked her up like a baby, no slinging over the shoulder like a sack of potatoes. For Magua, it was almost gentle. She didn't know where they were going, and forced herself to be completely limp in his arms.

She felt him re-deposit her in soft grass and walk away. She opened her eyes just a little to see what he was doing. She could see his legs from underneath the horse and he seemed to be digging into the pack they kept on it's flank. when she saw his legs turn and come back she shut her eyes again, waiting. In a few moments she felt an arm beneath her head and something was pushed to her lips. Some strong, rank liquid seeped into her mouth and burned her throat. Her eyes came open as she sputtered and coughed. She spit it out onto the grass.

"Awake now," he asked, looking very, very annoyed. She looked up at him with her watery eyes, and tried to speak around her burning throat.

"Wh..what is that," She gasped. He almost smiled at her and held up the small flask.

"Your people call it whi..ski.." He said trying out the word, and shaking his head when he couldn't quite say it right.

"Whisky," she responded, looking at him like he was crazy. "You gave me whisky?"

He looked amused by her reaction.

"I am ill," She said,laying back in the grass as if she were about to pass out again. "You do not give the ill whisky!"

He grabbed her face and held the flask before her eyes, his own looked dangerous again.

"I do not have time for your illness, moonchild," he told her dangerously. "This will bring you around should there be anymore fainting spells but I will not stop for this again."

With that, he hauled her to her feet and slung her like the preverbal sack over his shoulder. With little gentleness he flung her over the saddle and climbed up behind her. Before she could think of another plan, they were off.

When they stopped that night, Alice was, in fact, feeling pretty raw. Magua had made them ride so long that her legs and back side ached horribly. She had given up on playing sick after he poured the whisky down her throat. If she was pregnant then the last thing she needed was that foul tasting poison in her belly. She was horribly tired, as she watched Magua feed wood into the fire. She had kept down very little food of late and feared for the baby if she didn't get something her body could handle soon. She watched Magua through nearly tunneled vision. Good god, how she had started to hate him.

"Still ill, are we," He asked, looking at her with an amused expression. She wasn't completely convinced he had believed her little show earlier. However, she was pretty sure she was sick now, with more than just baby. When she didn't answer, he got up and came over to her. She blinked up at him as he knelt by her side but said nothing. He reached a hand out to touch her face then recoiled as if she had burned him. for her part, she didn't care. She wanted to be done with all this. Magua moved quickly, gathering things she couldn't make out in the dark. He talked to himself in the Huron tongue as he threw this and that into a cooking pot. She must have drifted off because the next thing she remembered was being pulled into a pair of arms, and something almost sweet sliding down her throat.

"You will not die like this Moonchild," Magua's voice sounded from nearby. "I will not let fever take what I have worked for."

Uncas dreamt of Alice that night. It was an intimate dream, the kind that leaves you sweating and needing something that you can't easily describe. He saw her face, tilted up toward his. Felt her body under him, her hands clinging to his upper arms. The dream Alice moaned his name, and arched toward him, almost begging. She didn't have to beg for long, in one graceful motion he was inside her, gasping at the feeling. Then they were moving, and all that could be heard were moans and little words whispered in the dark.

In the midst of it, they rolled over and Alice was soon staring down at him. He held her hips in place as she rode him, increasing the frequency with every passing moment.

"I'll protect it," dream Alice said, pinning him with blue eyes.

He started to ask what but a sudden movement from her stole his ability to speak.

"I'll protect it until you find us," She said again, her eyes still starring deeply into his. "You have to hurry, Time is running out"

He brought his hands up to her face and cupped it, trying to read whatever was going on in her eyes.

"What, protect what," He gasped, feeling himself getting close.

"You'll know," She responded. Then he came with a spine bowing intensity that tore a cry from his lips. Somewhere in the distance he thought he heard a baby cry.

Uncas came awake with a jerk in the early hours of the morning. He was uncomfortable despite the dream and vaguely wondered why. He looked down at his loin cloth and found it wet. He was glad the others were asleep for he certainly didn't want to have to explain himself. He pulled the soiled garment off and took it to the river to clean it off. Thankfully there were some spares in the pack. He grabbed a fresh one as he headed for the river. As Unca cleaned it, he thought about the dream and it's possible meaning. The spirits sent dreams all the time, usually as warning or, in this case, prophecies of things to come. He felt a cold sensation slide down his back. If Alice was pregnant then they needed to find her quickly, more than one life was at stake here. He sat back on the bank in slight shock. How could it happen so quickly? They had only been together that one time. For her it had been the first time, and yet they had still managed to make a child. He felt an almost loopy grin spread over his face. A child, they were going to have a child. Then the grin faded under fear, the fear that he would lose them both to a mad man. There was so much at stake and so little time.


	13. His Face and My Eyes

This is just a short chapter for 13, mostly because I wanted to establish what's going on with Alice before getting into the Barrens. So here if my nice and short chapter 13 and then I can get into the nice action packed and fairly violent chapter 14. So here we go...

**His Face and My Eyes**

Alice fell into another dream, though this one was in no way erotic. She was in the woods, it was night and only a full moon lit the path in front of her. The path itself forked off in two different directions. One way lead off into the dark, it's ending unclear. The other was open and wide, showing a meadow up a head. She stood before them, unsure of where to go. The meadow was inviting, it seemed like the logical choice. The other path was dark and she couldn't see anything in the thick trees. She was just starting to move toward the meadow when a voice reached her ears.

"Mother," She turned and found a young boy, no older than nine or ten standing behind her. He had Uncas long dark hair and her blue eyes. Somehow she knew him to be her son.

"Come with me mother," He said, holding out a hand. "We need you."

Alice could only stare at the offered hand, raising one to her throat and the lump that seemed to form there. The boy was beautiful and though she didn't know him yet she felt a love she didn't know existed rise in her. He waited patiently, wearing his fathers stoic expression. Her own eyes staring beseechingly back at her.

"Please," He said again, "We need you."

She nodded then, with tears falling down her cheeks. They did need her, Uncas and this boy who had yet to be born. She couldn't go to that meadow yet, she had to go back and try again. She took that little boys hand, and with him went back to the blue world.

Alice awoke with a start and saw the night sky blinking back down at her. She could hear the snores of Magua, as ever close by. Alice brought a hand up and placed it on her belly, with a strange feeling flooding into her limbs. She knew very well that she was ill, possibly very ill but suddenly it didn't matter. There was a life inside that needed her to be strong. It needed her to stand up, and it needed her to walk. As though possessed, alice sat up and slowly began to rise to her feet. There was no more clinging to trees for support. No more safety net of holding on to a low branch. She simply decided that it was time to stand up.

And god help her, she did it.

Alice pushed to her feet slowly and shakily but she still managed it. It was painful and she willfully held back a cry of pain as she stood on her own two feet for the first time in months. She stood with no help or support under the starry sky.

Then, Miracle of miracles, she took a step forward. then another and another. She walked a mere five paces on her own before whatever magic had taken over fled, back into the night and forests. She fell on her behind in the grass and placed her hand back on her stomach.

"Thank you," She whispered into the dark.

The next morning, the tips of jagged rocks were not far in the distance. Magua had woken her before first light and the had been riding steadily until late morning. Now the Stone Barrens were upon them. It was a field of white stone that spikes it's way into the horizon. It was what Magua had been searching for all this time, and if he had his way it would be her grave-site. Alice glared at his back through her fever-filled eyes and hoped her felt it. She was tired of being weak, and now she had more to fight for than just herself.

_"We need you"_ That child's voice played over in her mind, those eyes so like hers burned into her memory.

Let this mad man take her in there, let him try to kill her. She had walked once and knew now, somehow, that she would walk again. When his back was turned, and it was so often was, She would be gone. She would hide in those stone barrens until the others came. If they didn't, well, she was prepared to take magua on herself.


	14. The Stone Barrens

well, People, here we go. the last chapter before the epilogue. I hope this isn't too confusing for people or too weird, it's something that came to mind...well today...and I just had to try it. All I'm going to say is take it as you will. There's a lot going on here, you can call it magic if you want but it's not that exactly...divine intervention perhaps...but it's not even that...it's just one of those things that has little explanation...and maybe it doesn't need one. Anyway, here we go...

**The Stone Barrens**

When they reached the edge of that jagged, barren, stone forest, Magua moved quickly. He lifted her from the horse and carried her quickly into the rocks. Alice looked around as he bore her weight through the stones and felt a hint of trepidation rising in her. The Barrens were massive. Endless rows of long jagged rocks climbing into the sky. The rock itself was almost white, gleaming like the bones of long dead animals. It was also a maze, a maze that magua seemed to know well. They circled onto path after path, rise after rise, before he dumped her none to gently onto the dusty ground. Alice played the part of the ill and infirm. She lay down on the ground as if exhausted, as if the fever were sapping all her energy. She needed him to believe she was weak, crippled, it was the only way to keep him off guard.

"Do not die on me yet, Moon child" Magua said over his shoulder as he looked out over the rocks. "Your death will come soon enough, but not until I am satisfied that your sister will follow."

Uncas and the others saw the jagged rocks in the distance and stopped up short. Chingachgook looked ahead with a locked jaw, his eyes searching the horizon for answers.

"_The Stone Barrens"_ He said in Mohican, his hands tightening and un-tightening on the reins. If the boys didn't know better they would have said he was scared.

"Father," Asked Nathaniel from his place near the back. Cora looked at their father with an almost understanding gleam in her eyes. Uncas said nothing, and was staring instead off down the path.

_"Our elders spoke of the barrens when I was a boy," _ He spoke in a low voice, eyes straight ahead. He seemed to have forgotten that Cora could not understand him.

"_They used to say that the path could change when your back was turned, and the spirits of warriors you killed would return to pit themselves against you once more."_

"So it's haunted," Nathaniel asked with a raised eyebrow. Cora's expression mirrored his.

"Yes, and no," His father said, finally turning to look at him. "Not by the dead as we know them. Memories haunt this place. Magua has chosen a battleground that could kill him if it chooses."

"How can the barrens, themselves, kill?" Cora asked, looking ahead to the rocks.

"They are merely stone, stone doesn't think."

Chingachgook looked at her meaningfully for a moment before he spoke.

"The Stone Barrens are alive in their own way, just remember that. Anything you see that shouldn't be there, any person who should be dead that you might see...I caution you to ignore it. This place is not meant for the living."

Uncas heard little of this conversation as he stared off down the path ahead. He saw the Barrens, he heard his father speak, but it was what he saw up ahead that drew his eyes. some small distance up the path, almost immediately between him and the stone fortress was a child. He could not immediately tell gender because the child's face was hidden by long dark hair. It seemed to be looking at something in it's hands. As the others talked amongst themselves of what might and might not lay ahead, he slowly took his horse down the path. He approached the child slowly so as not to scare it and as he came closer, the child lifted it's face.

He found himself staring into the face of a little girl. She had dark delicate features that was framed by straight black hair. When she looked into his eyes, hers were a breathtaking blue.

"Your eyes-" He started to say, then she turned on her heel and ran up the path.

"Wait," He cried and raced after her, ignoring the cries of the others behind him.

The sound of horses hooves rang through the stones, the noises amplified and carried to Alice's ears from farther off. She saw Magua's back tense as he peered over the rocks, hoisting a rifle and waiting. His back was turned and Alice sat up. A movement to her left caught her eye, She turned and saw the same boy from her dream. He stood next to her, his blue eyes looking deeply into her own. He pressed a finger to her lips and beckoned to her with one hand. she climbed silently to her bare feet and padded after him. Magua didn't even turn around, not hearing her slight movement over the horses hooves. She followed the boy a small distance away and stifled a gasp when she saw a new path. There had been no way up the rocky incline but the way they had come. Now there was a clear path leading down the other side. The boy beckoned to her again and she follow slowly, making no sound as they made their way down the new incline.

The child was surefooted, moving swiftly while she stumbled a bit on unsure legs. She stopped briefly to look back up the path and started. There was nothing behind her but solid rock, no path at all. How had they gotten down?

"Mother," The child said, drawing her attention back around. She nodded and followed him again. He lead her through row after row of rock, a maze of stone and dust.

'Where are we going?" She asked finally. The boy would not answer her and she flung herself to the ground at the sound of nearby gun fire. She threw her arms over her head and tried not to scream. Somewhere, not too far away she thought she heard Magua's scream of fury. Good god, what was happening?

"UNCAS!" Nathaniel screamed for his brother as we went racing blindly into the Barrens. He didn't seem to hear, just raced off without looking back.

"Stupid, lovesick fool," he grumbled as he spurred his horse after. His father and Cora followed behind him. They soon found themselves in a maze of rock and stone, with uncas up ahead, looking this way and that as if he had lost someone. Nathaniel started to speak when gun fire erupted somewhere nearby. It startled Uncas horse, who reared into the air and threw the unsuspecting young man off. Nathaniel wheeled about with his own rifle and fired a shot of his own. He had no way of knowing if it hit anything. From somewhere above he thought he heard laughter.

Alice lifted her head from under her arm and saw her son standing directly in front of her. He held a hand out at if to help her up. She looked into his little face and found some courage that had momentarily eluded her. She took his hand and he helped her to her feet, and hand in hand they took off down the path again. She had thought he would be intangible, like something from a dream but his little hand was quite warm in hers as the circled around another bend of stones. She didn't know where they were going and she didn't care. she trusted this illusion or dream, whatever he was. She could still hear gunfire behind her, muffled voices, her sisters cry of anger. They had come for her at last. Abruptly they stopped, the boy seemed to be listening to something only he could hear. He nodded and turned to her.

"They can't do it alone," He told her. "They won't be able to find him. I can lead you out but..." He trailed off and his eyes filled with tears. Alice dropped to her knees before him and placed her hands on his shoulders. She looked into his eyes for answers.

"What," She asked gently, "what will happen?"

"If you leave, father will..." He seemed unable to finish and Alice didn't want him to.

"I won't leave, tell me what to do."

The tears still flowed as the little boy looked around, he looked scared. He turned back to her and bit his lip.

"Will you fight him, will you protect us, all of us?" He asked, looking so scared it broke her heart. She pulled the little boy into her arms and held him close. He had tried to save her, lead her away but now it might mean his fathers death. She had not come so far only to lose Uncas now. No, he would live, they would raise this little boy together.

"Yes," she whispered.

There was a light tremble in the earth beneath her knees and then a lightness in her arms. When she raised her head, the child was gone and pressed to her chest was an ornate knife, long and gleaming in the sun. She looked ahead of her and a straight path lay open, she knew where it lead. She rose to her feet and began to walk.

Magua laughed as the mans horse reared up, throwing him to the ground. He turned back to the moon child to tell her how her man was failing and could not believe him eyes. She was gone. There were dusty foot prints leading up to bare rock then nothing at all. He let out a cry of fury and whirled back to where the others were, looking to see if someone had snuck up behind him and taken her. She was not with them. He laughed as they tried to hide. They did not know he could see them. He could see their hiding spots as clear as day. He saw the dark haired sister clear enough and fired a shot. A cry of pain let him know he had hit something. She flung herself away and out of sight. No matter, he would have her when she ventured out again. The dark haired man below seemed oblivious to the gun fire as he was still in plain sight. An easy kill. He would find the moon child easily in a moment. she couldn't walk, and he knew these paths well. He had taken a war party here to train some years back, he knew all the hiding places. He focused on the young man below as his finger moved toward the trigger.

Alice found herself in a dark so black she could not see where she was going, one moment she was one the path and the next, darkness. She moved forward with the ornate knife clenched in her hand and tried to stay straight. She fumbled along in the dark, twisting in a circle to feel what was around her, and suddenly she was in the light again. She quite literally stepped out of a shadow onto the ledge where she had started. She found herself facing Magua's back as he raised his rifle and aimed. She walked slowly up behind him and looked at the knife in her hands. She looked over the edge to where his gun was pointed, and then her hand moved of it's own accord. It stabbed forward into the back of his neck. She pulled it out and stabbed him again in the back. He made a gurgling gasping sound and whirled around to face his attacker. His eyes widened at the sight of her, standing there, and narrowed in confusion at the weapon in her hand.

"I will not die this day," She told him simply. He tried to make a feeble attempt at attacking her but she ducked, she ran the knife into his gut and with all her strength pushed upward and shoved. She didn't know how she did it, but he went over the edge of the stone precipice. He seemed to fly easily over that edge, hovered for a moment and was gone. there was a cry from below as his body hit, a murmuring of confused voices. She was alone, and covered in his blood. Alice stood in silence for a moment, feeling tired and sore. She could feel the fever in the heat coming off her face. She turned on unsteady feet and stumbled back toward the path.

Uncas followed the little girl at a run, she stayed ahead of him through the blowing dust so that all he could see of her was her long hair trailing behind. The wind lifted the dust from the ground and blew it into a kind of mist. He couldn't see where he was going. He noticed suddenly that the gun fire had stopped, all was quiet. Then the wall of dust the child had run through cleared and he saw someone walking toward him. He squinted and drew his tomahawk as the figure came closer, walking slow. Their step was wobbly and he watched the figure stumble a moment then right itself.

Out of the mist came a female that was covered in blood. It seemed smeared about her face, down her dress, even in her hair. The figure stopped and looked up at him, bright blue eyes meeting his. Alice, his Alice was staring back at him. Not only was she alive but she was walking, He dropped the tomahawk and started to run to her when she spoke.

"I protected him," She said, her voice tired, her eyes now looked bleary. In her hand she held a long jagged piece of rock, this too was covered in blood.

"Him?" Uncas asked, understanding and yet. She swayed where she stood.

"Our son," She said, then collapsed at his feet.


	15. EpilogueCount The Stars

Ok, here is the last and final chapter of this story! Thank you so much to everyone that stuck with me through the long process of writing this and I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did. Thank you for all the nice comments and the encouragement to keep going. I hope you will all stick with me through "Shiloh" as well because I could not have written this story without you. Happy reading everyone, i give you the final chapter...

Epilogue

**Count the Stars**

"Push Alice, push hard" Cora said as she bore down on her sister's belly, trying to work around her own large stomach in the process. Her scared hand bore down gently but firmly as Alice screamed her pain into the sweating lodge ceiling. It had been almost 10 months exactly since the death of Magua and the events at the Stone Barrens. 10 months of healing the hole in Cora's hand from a missed shot meant to take her life. 10 months of hard pregnancy on legs that sometimes still didn't respond well. 10 months leading up to this moment, when her and Uncas child would come into the world. She gritted her teeth and urged the child to come out and meet her.

"One more Alice," Cora said, holding one of her sisters hands tightly. "One more and you will be able to meet your son."

Alice gave one more mighty, bone wrenching push and a child's cry filled the lodge. Alice's head fell back against the skins and she stared up at the stars for a moment before the baby was placed in her arms. Her own eyes stared back at her and she laughed and cried, mixing the happy sound with those of her baby.

Uncas was impatiently pacing outside the lodge with the men and other villagers as his baby's cry pierced the air. He looked up expectantly as Cora emerged from the hut carrying a bundle in her arms. She looked tired and radiant with his son held above her own pregnant belly.

Uncas," She said with a smile 'You have a son."

He didn't know what to say or do as the child was laid in his arms, his joy was so great. He was speechless with everything he felt. There had been concern early on that Alice might not be able to carry the baby to term. Not with all she had suffered at Magua's hands, her high fever early on, and her legs. She and the baby had proven stronger than anyone imagined.

Suddenly another baby's cry sounded from the lodge, and Uncas looked up in Shock as Owl Circling emerged from the lodge with another smaller bundle in her arms.

" _Warrior_, " she said with a pleasant smile. " _You also have a daughter_ "

The smaller girl was laid into his arms and stared up at him dreamily with her mother's blue eyes. Then his joy burst from him in a cry that was echoed all over the camp as warriors and villagers came forward to meet his children. Nathaniel came forward to kiss his wife and lay a loving hand on her belly, knowing that soon, it would be her giving birth in the lodge and he letting out the triumphant cry. Cora met his gaze in loving adoration and placed her scarred palm over his, they smiled as the baby kicked.

Later that evening, Uncas and Alice lay together in their hut and studied their children. Alice had named the boy "Count the Stars" because when he was awake he did nothing but gaze at the sky, and because she had looked at the same stars so often before he was born. The little girl was given the name "Hiding Fox" by her father, because in his vision of her all those months ago she had moved with the swiftness of a fox and hidden her face from him.

They were a full family now, Alice, Uncas, and their children. Everything she had dreamed up until this moment had come to pass. Her son stirred in his sleep and his sister stretched a tiny arm out as if to hold him, as she must have done many times in the womb. He had protected her in his own way even before they were born, Alice realized it now. In her death vision when he had said "We need you" he hadn't meant his father, he had meant he and his twin. How funny it was that love could transcend birth and death and bring us around to where we needed to be.

Uncas hand on her face brought her eyes up to look at his and in his eyes she saw a deep pool of love and tenderness. She placed a hand over his and smiled at him happily. They said no words to one another, no words were needed. They slept that night curled around Count the Stars and Hiding fox, with the stars shining down brightly on their faces and their lives were full and happy with their children. Lives full of no more or less joy and turmoil a person can expect. Count the stars and Hiding Fox grew up and went on to do many great things in their lives. That, however, is a story for another day.

**The End**


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